


Shifting Tides

by ArcanusAnima



Series: Underwater Adventures [1]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: But only a bit, Fluff, M/M, Mermaids, Merstuck, otherwise it's all happy, some angst and comfort, they're actually sirens in this but same thing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-28
Updated: 2016-08-28
Packaged: 2018-08-11 12:18:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7892041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArcanusAnima/pseuds/ArcanusAnima
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An unexpected meeting drastically changes the lives of two people. A brief look at how they met to where they are going.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shifting Tides

**Author's Note:**

> This idea came to me and I just had to write it down. You can never have too much happy DirkJake interactions and I am a sucker for Aus. I'm really happy with how this turned out and I hope the formatting is easy to follow. 
> 
> Regular text is in the present time while italicized text takes place in the past.
> 
> Also as a small note, there is a brief scene that contains nudity near the end of the story. Nothing explicit, in fact it's just barely mentioned, but I thought I should make a note about it.
> 
> It's past midnight as I post this so please forgive me for any mistakes I might have missed.

You stare out across the sea from your perch on a slightly damp rock, watching a lone seagull as it disappears into the clouds. The sun is slowly setting in the sky off to your right, bathing everything in a fiery glow. Sounds of various creatures stirring as the sun falls bring the island behind you to life. You let out a weary sigh.

The steady rhythm of the waves lapping against the shore is interrupted by a rather abrupt splash followed by a few low grunts. A presence settles next to you, quietly joining you in looking out over the ocean.

Eventually your companion breaks the silence. “So what’s with the long face, English? You’re normally raring to go on our next adventure when I get here.”

You turn to meet vibrant orange eyes staring at you with concern. “I was just thinking, old chap,” you tell him without much conviction. His eyes narrow at you in disbelief.

“Those must be some pretty heavy thoughts then. Just what are you thinking about in that head of yours?”

A different event comes to mind as you look at him. “Well, right now I’m thinking about our first meeting. Gave me a right good shock when you washed up after that storm.”

_It was early morning when you left your house that day, trekking through the refreshingly peaceful forest. The night before a rather fierce storm had swept over the island and it seemed many of the animals were still tucked away in their shelters. You are quite grateful for this, as it makes the hike to the beach quick and easy. You always go out to see if anything interesting has washed up after a storm. Not that you have managed to find anything to date, but perhaps today would be the day!_

_You leave the cover of the trees and quickly scale down the rocks that lead down to the water. The tide is still low, giving you more area to explore. You walk along the shore looking for anything that peaks your interest. You spend some time scouring both the beach and the water but only find pieces of debris and some rather large seashells that you gather up to show to your grandmother later. It’s not until you wander closer to a cluster of rocks near the cliffside that a spot of vivid orange catches your eye._

_You hurry over to go see what it is. Maybe it’s a large fish that got caught in the tide and swept up onto the shore. You have seen many oddly colored fish around the island from time to time, most with colors that you would think were unnatural. But grandma always assured you that the fish had been there since she had lived on the island and that you shouldn’t worry about them. As you get closer it becomes clear that the orange is in fact from a large scaled tail. A grin stretches across your face. You’ll finally get a closer look at these mysteriously colored fish!_

_When you reach your discovery you pause to study the strange shape of the tail and fin of the creature. Unlike any fish you have ever seen this one has a tail that narrows down to a point and then flares out into a uniquely shaped fin. The fin is long and narrow, the edges reaching out to curl inwards before receding back to the tip of the tail. There are also a secondary pair of fins just above that, though these are just simply curved. All of the fins are a shade of orange just a bit lighter than the rest of the tail. The tail itself is covered in a fine layer of scales that lay in a reversed raindrop pattern, round at the top and sharp point at the bottom. You have no doubt that if caught those scales would deal quite a bit of damage to any would-be assailant._

_You carefully step over the tail in order to see more, as an inconvenient rock was blocking a majority of your sight, and nearly stumble face first into the said. Bloody hell, this was not a fish that washed up on the beach. At least, from the waist up that was certainly no fish. The orange scales of the fish tail seamlessly flowed into a very human torso. Just above where the tail ends are three orange tinted slits on each of its sides. The creature is sprawled out on its front, one arm trapped beneath it while the other is lying limply next to it. Patches of orange scales cover the hand you can see, with more scales lightly scattered up the arms as well. Another narrow fin flares out from the wrist and stretches out just past the elbow. You briefly wonder if the fin on the other arm is getting crushed. Pale blonde hair spreads out in thick layers to cover what little of the creatures face is not pressed into the wet sand._

_“Wow, an actual mermaid,” you breathe out, shock turning quickly into pure elation. “I found an actual, real life mermaid!”. You end up shouting that last part, leaping into the air as you fail to hold in your excitement. It’s a good thing you don’t have to worry about anyone else hearing you._

_Well, you didn’t have to worry about anyone else besides the mythical being that you just woke up. At least that means it’s not dead, which you hadn’t even thought to check before. Whoopsie daisy._

_“The fuck you callin’ a mermaid?” The muttered question sounds much deeper than you had expected. Not that you have any idea of what to expect anymore. But you had thought that most creatures of this sort tended to be female. And as the fellow pushes up from the sand to look at you it becomes clear that he is almost definitely male._

_You are distracted by the piercing orange eyes that stare into your own and fail to realize that not only had the not-mermaid talked but had also asked you a question, rhetorical as it may have been. Now that his face isn’t pressed into the sand you can see that he has incredibly sharp features that you would normally associate with his kind. Even the scales beneath his eyes and the large fins where his ears should be only serve to highlight the ethereal beauty he has._

_“Hey, handsome siren to clueless human. Anything working in that head of yours or are you just going to keep staring at me. Not that I can blame you, but I would kind of like to get off this forsaken sand and back in the ocean sometime soon.”_

_You continue to stare in awe until a sudden shock of cold droplets of water splash in your face. You startle, then frown when the crea- wait no he said something about a siren, right? - the siren smirks at you from where he’s managed to flip himself onto his back._

_“Right, sorry about that. It’s just not everyday that I manage to find a, siren did you say?” he nods, “so you will have to forgive me for being a tad enthusiastic.”_

_He makes a noise you think might have been a snort. “I think that was a bit more than a tad enthusiastic. Anyways, mind giving a guy a hand? It’s starting to get difficult for me to breathe out here in all this fresh air.” He makes a motion towards his neck where you can see two more thin slits tinted dark orange on either side. Oh, right, that would make sense for him to have gills._

_“Oh, gosh. We certainly can’t have you suffocating out here! Let me just,” you crouch down and quickly scoop him up without a thought. He’s a bit heavier than you expected, but then again that tail of his must be pure muscle and therefore incredibly heavy. He makes a startled noise as he leaves the ground and grips at your shoulders with incredibly sharp claws. Ow._

_“Fuck, dude. You can’t just go picking up fair maidens with no warning. Also, just what the hell are you eating that let’s you go swinging me around like I weigh nothing. You’ve got some serious biceps going on here.”_

_You adjust your grip on the siren so you can turn and walk closer to the ocean. “We don’t eat anything special here, just the wild animals I hunt and whatever the supply drops send us occasionally. Everything else just comes from being a mighty explorer!”_

_“Well whatever you’re doing feel free to keep it up.” Is it just you, or is your companion’s voice getting fainter. You slosh though the tide, barely getting out far enough for the water to reach your knees before the siren struggles out of your grip. He lands with a large splash, managing to completely soak you, before speeding away with a quick flick of his tail._

_You’re about to call out to him, upset that he might have just left without you getting to learn anything about him, without even getting to learn his name. He pops back up before you can say anything though, hair fully plastered to his head and with a much healthier color to his skin. Right, the poor fellow needed to be in the water to breathe. It was no wonder he was in such a hurry to escape your hold._

_He swims back over to you, settling himself on the sandy floor. You drop down to your knees so it’s not awkward for either of you to look at each other. You’re sitting in a good foot of water with the tide reaching higher, but that doesn’t bother you. Instead you hold your hand out. “I almost forgot in all the excitement, but my name is Jake.”_

_The siren looks at your hand for a second, then shifts himself onto one arm so he can grasp your hand. “Dirk. Thanks again for saving me from the whole beached whale act.”_

_You shake hands, noticing that his skin is harder than yours even with the callouses you have built up over the years. “Not a problem! Though I am curious, if you need to be in the water to breathe how did you survive being on land this long? I assume the storm tossed you up here and that ended quite some time ago.”_

_Dirk takes his hand back and shrugs. “We can breathe regular air for some time, but our lungs are pretty small compared humans’. So we have to keep surface trips pretty short, not that we spend much time completely out of the water. Here, look.” He rolls over onto his side and points to the three slits you had noticed earlier on his side. “We have two sets of gills, and so long as one set is in the water we’re good, though again we aren’t really made to stay out of the water for any real length of time.”_

_You nod, watching as the slits open and close with the flow of the water. “Since you keep saying we I assume there must be more people like you?”_

_He rolls his eyes at you. “No, I am the only siren that has ever existed, cursed to live a life of solitude in my own endless watery world.” You scowl at his sarcasm. “Of course there’s more of us. In fact there’s a whole colony in this area. We tend to keep away from heavily human populated areas so it’s not surprising you’ve never seen one of us. And I hate to cut this Q &A session short, but I need to get back home. Don’t need  my family freaking out and sending a search party to look for me.”_

_You frown in disappointment. “Do you really have to go?” This was all happening so quickly and you still had so much you wanted to know._

_“Yeah, afraid so. Got shit to do, people to see. But if it makes you feel better come back here in two days when the sun is just starting to going down. We can talk more then.”_

_You grin happily. “Right-o! We can share stories and get to know one another better. It will be a grand time!”_

_Dirk smirks at you and moves to leave. “Whatever you say. See you in a few days, and thanks again, Jake.” With that Dirk dives under the waves and quickly vanishes from your sight. You stare out at the ocean for a while trying to absorb what had happened. Eventually the sun sinks lower in the sky and you start to get cold from your clothes being soaked through. You turn and leave the ocean behind you, making your way home with the thought of meeting Dirk again in two days time._

“I still can’t believe you actually came back to meet me after those two days.” you say, looking over at the siren who had made such a difference in your life. 

Dirk gives you a soft smile. “Well, what can I say. I had never met a human, and you piqued my interest. Not to mention you saved my life. Even with all those ‘adventures’ you insisted we go on it was enjoyable spending time with you.”

You smack him in the arm lightly. “Oh, shove off. I know for a fact that you enjoyed those. Remember when we went out to that nearby island with all the turtles?”

“I seem to remember just how loudly you screamed when you fell out of your boat.” Dirk says with a smirk. 

“Hey! I thought we agreed not to mention that again.” You scowl as Dirk just chuckles. “Well, how about the time you showed me that underwater cave? You sure seemed to enjoy that trip.”

_It has been nearly four months since you met Dirk, and the two of you have been meeting regularly ever since. You have learned quite a bit about each other during the time you have spent together, and you are incredibly happy to call Dirk a close friend now. You’re settled down on your now familiar rock that overlooks the sea. Your chosen rock juts out into the water a good ways and was also at the perfect height for Dirk to be able to pull himself onto without any help. The sun is well on its way to sinking past the horizon, and the missing heat is very noticeable on your bare skin. It’s later then when you normally meet with Dirk, usually he comes when the sky is just barely starting to darken. But last time Dirk said he wanted to show you something and that the best time to see it would be at night. So here you are, sitting in your swimming trunks at sundown waiting for a mythical creature to arrive._

_A flash of orange in the dying light signals Dirk’s arrival, and soon he’s pulling himself up to lean on the rock you’re sitting on. “Howdy there, Dirk! I have to say I am quite excited to see this mysterious place you’re going to show me.” You’re practically shaking, eager to head out on your next adventure._

_“Wow, straight to the point as always. But it would be a good idea to head out now while there’s still some light to guide off of. You’re going to have to swim out to it, since there’s no place to tie your boat to.”_

_Dirk slides back off the rock as you get up. “Alright then! What are we waiting for? Let’s go!” You jump down into the water and run until you can dive in. You have long since gotten over the fear that Dirk might try to drown you, though it had taken some time for you to get into the water with him. Now you swim out far enough so that Dirk can come up underneath you and you can grab onto his shoulders. Once you had started swimming places with Dirk the siren had quickly become irritated at how slow you were. He had then insisted that you allow him to tow you around. Though the fact that you couldn’t keep up with him at first irked you, now you greatly enjoy the experience of gliding through the water at high speed._

_Dirk slows down as you approach a large grouping of rocks. You let go of his shoulders and tread water as Dirk pops up next to you. There are points of light becoming visible over his body, a unique attribute that he had told you was bioluminescence. The lights acted almost like freckles but they only became visible when it got dark enough.“If you brought me out here to see a bunch of rocks I will be seriously disappointed,” you tell him playfully._

_“Relax, this isn’t what I wanted to show you. But for this next part I have to ask if you trust me.” He’s looking at you in complete seriousness. “What I want to show you is inside this rock formation. And the only way to get there is through an underwater cave. You are going to have to hold your breath and rely on me to navigate through this. I realize this is a huge deal, so it’s completely up to you.”_

_You take a moment to think about this seriously. Dirk has done nothing to make you think ill of his intentions so far, and from all the time you have spent with him he has come across as a good guy. “As long as you’re sure you can get me through without running out of air?” you have to ask._

_Dirk nods. “Yeah, I’m fairly certain you can hold your breath long enough to reach the air pocket inside.” Well that will just have to be good enough._

_“Right then, chap. I trust you.” Dirk lights up at your decision, both figuratively and literally. The sprinkling of bioluminescent freckles scattered on his face and body briefly glow brighter. You smile and hold your hand out and let Dirk draw you close to him. He wraps your arms under his own and around his back, situating his own arms to hold you against him. You try not to think about how close you are, but by the heat you feel on your face you know you are failing that endeavor._

_“Are you ready?” Dirk asks, and you take a deep breath to settle your nerves. You nod and Dirk tightens his grip. “I’ll dive on three then. One, two-”_

_You take a huge gulp of air just as Dirk says three. He plunges you both down into the water, and darkness swallows you as you squeeze your eyes shut. You can do nothing but hold onto him as he twists and turns, following some unseen path. It is incredibly disorienting to be traveling like this, on your back without your sight and not being able to breathe. Thankfully just as your lungs begin to burn for air Dirk brings you both upright and light becomes visible beneath your eyelids. As soon as you break the surface you gasp for air, chest heaving as you struggle to take in as much air in as little time as you can. Dirk kindly keeps you afloat so you don’t have to worry about moving your limbs while you regain your breath. Finally your lungs stop burning and you bring a hand up to wipe water from your face so you can open your eyes._

_Worried orange eyes are the first thing you see. When he notices your eyes open some of the tension drains from his face. “Jake? Are you okay?”_

_You take a moment more to steady your breathing before nodding. “I’m alright. Just a bit winded, is all.” Dirk still doesn’t look convinced, so you put on a smile and pat his arm. “Honestly, chap. I’ll be just fine. We just need to wait a while before we go back so I can handle that. Now, just what did you want to show me?”_

_Dirk stares at you unhappily but seems to realize you aren’t going to budge on your opinion. Instead he tilts his head up. “Take a look around and see for yourself.”_

_You follow his signal and gaze up above you. Your jaw falls open in shock. All around you are gleaming gems glowing softly from some source of light. Most of the rock formation must be hollowed out with just how large the cave is. The ceiling stretches high above you, giving the illusion of thousands of stars glittering in the sky. The space radiates a gentle light so you can just make out your surroundings._

_You tear your eyes away from the spectacle to grin at Dirk. “This is fantastic, Dirk! How in the world did you ever come across such a sight?”_

_Dirk smirks lightly. “Found it one day while I was out scouting. I like to come here when I need some peace and quiet away from people.”_

_You glance back up to look at the twinkling walls. “This is just, wow. I can’t believe something like this exists. Thank you for showing this to me.” You look back down at Dirk, and realize that neither of you ever let go of each other. Your face flushes with his proximity and you awkwardly shift to move away. “Ah, sorry about that. I’ll just, uh,” you go to push away from him but his hand comes up to grab your arm._

_“Wait. Jake, I. There was another reason I wanted to bring you here.” You still as Dirk looks away, his freckles brightening. He takes a breath to steel himself and looks back at you. “I know we met just a short time ago, but I feel like there is already a strong connection between us. So. Jake English, I would ask for your permission to formally court you.”_

_You stare at Dirk, utterly speechless. Is he asking to date you? You do have to admit there had been times when your thoughts had strayed into similar realms. Dirk certainly was good looking, his exotic features only adding to beauty. But in all honesty it was his personality that really charmed you, always managing to make you laugh and making you comfortable in his presence. Dirk had quickly became your friend, and now he was asking if you wanted to be more._

_Dirk becomes more discouraged as you remain silent. You snap out of your thoughts when he lets go of your arm and inches back. You snatch his hand back, holding it in your own. “I can’t say that I have any experience in this sort of thing, but I wouldn’t mind trying with you. So yes, you can court me, Dirk Strider.”_

_Dirk breaks out into an absolutely brilliant smile, glowing brighter than the gems that surround you. Figuratively at least. He brings both of his hands up to caress your face, gazing into your eyes with tenderness. “Jake, you have no idea just how happy that makes me. I swear, anything you ever want I will get it for you. If there is ever anything you need all you have to do is ask.” He brings a hand up to caress the side of your face. “And I know this is kind of quick, but can I kiss you?”_

_“Well, I don’t know. Can you kiss me?” you reply cheekily. Without letting him respond you stretch up to press a kiss to his lips. You keep it brief, just a quick peck but you’re proud when it makes him blush. Dirk doesn’t let you enjoy your small victory for long as he brings your lips together once more. This time you relax into the kiss, letting yourself float there with Dirk surrounded by hundreds of shining lights._

_Eventually the two of you separate, after sharing several more kisses, and Dirk takes you back to your island. You say your farewells for the night, adding in a parting goodbye kiss. Your following meetings don’t really change that much. You continue to spend time together, showing each other new items and places. The main difference is the addition of gifts brought to you by Dirk and the stolen kisses you frequently share. The new additions only make your time more enjoyable and you couldn’t be happier._

“Fine, I’ll admit that not all of your little adventures are bad. I will also concede that particular trip was my personal favorite.” Dirk reaches over to rest his hand on yours. You turn your hand so that you can intertwine your fingers, being careful of the webbing between Dirk’s fingers. As you do so the seashell and scale bracelet on your wrist jangles. It was the first gift Dirk had given you, a physical symbol that the two of you were dating. Or courting, as Dirk insisted you call it. You never took it off, even though your grandmother had questioned you about it on multiple occasions. 

Dirk nudges you with his shoulder. “You’re still spacing out on me, dude. Now what are you thinking about?”

You smile sadly at him. “Well, remembering all these good times inevitably makes me think of the day you told me there was a way for us to actually be together.”

_You and Dirk are lounging in the surf, enjoying the sun’s warmth and each other’s company. Dirk had told you that he could spend the entire day with you today, so you had told your grandmother you would be out exploring all day and not to wait up for you. So far the two of you had spent your time swimming and exploring the shallows, Dirk pointing out the different creatures you saw. Now you were content to sit up against your boyfriend, relaxing with a full stomach and Dirk running his fingers through your hair. You were well on your way to falling asleep even with the water lapping at your legs._

_“Hey, Jake?” Dirk’s voice is soft, probably in case you actually had dozed off. You make a questioning sound in the back of your throat to urge him to continue. “Have you ever thought about, well, us?”_

_Uh, oh. This sounds like a serious conversation. You sit up so you can look at him. “What exactly do you mean? We’re already dating, sorry, courting. Please don’t tell me you’re already thinking about marriage or the like.” That would be just a little too much. You had only been dating for a few months!_

_Dirk gives you a disbelieving look. “Dude, we’ve only known each other for just over a year. I mean I am totally open to the idea but not until we’ve spent way more time together. But I guess this is somewhat on the same level of seriousness.” He pauses, gently picking up your hand and giving it a squeeze before continuing. “I hate the time we have to spend apart. Only getting to see you for a few measly hours every couple of days is torture. I want to spend more time with you, to be able to see you everyday. I want to be able to truly show you the wonders of my world. Would you consider joining me so that I could do all of that?”_

_You stare at him in shock. “What, I mean, is that even possible? I still need to breathe air and last I checked you spent all of your time underwater.”_

_Dirk stares down at your joined hands. “There’s a spell, something that has been passed down for generations. It allows us to turn a human into a siren, but only if the human wants to be turned. Normally it’s used with life partners, whether they’re romantic partners or not, so that they can stay together without the forced separation their two worlds cause.”_

_“Golly, Dirk. That’s, that is one hell of a question to ask a guy. The very idea of experiencing the world you live in gets me itching for more adventure.” And it really does. You can’t even begin to imagine all of the amazing secrets that must lie beneath the sea. “But it would mean leaving everything I have ever known here. It would mean leaving my grandmother all on her own, and I can’t in my right mind do that. I’m sorry, Dirk. I would love to spend more time with you, even get to see your world, but right now I just can’t.”_

_Dirk’s expression has settled into something you can’t read at all. He also refuses to look at you. “Hey, Dirk. Dirk, look at me.” You bring your free hand to tilt Dirk’s head up to meet your eyes. “I’m not saying no to your offer. I’m saying that at this moment I can not rightly drop everything here and leave with you. Even if I wasn’t leaving someone here I would need some time to think this through. It’s a lot to think about.” You hope Dirk understands what you are trying to say._

_It seems he does, at least somewhat, as his expression softens. “Yeah, that was a bit much to throw at you. Sorry.”_

_You lean in to give him a quick kiss. “It’s quite alright. I’m glad to know that there is a way for us to be together, more than what we are now. Perhaps one day I’ll take you up on your offer.”_

_“Well, just know that the offer is always there. Whenever you change your mind all you have to do is tell me.” Dirk looks out towards the horizon, still looking a tad dejected. “I’ve given you some heavy stuff to think about. I should probably take off and let you sort it all out.” He reaches up and cups your face, kissing you soundly before swiftly swimming off into the sea. All before you could so much as think of something to say._

_You scramble up to your feet, yelling after your frustrating boyfriend. “Dirk! You get your arse back here! You can’t just say all of that and run away! Dirk!”_

_Of course you get no response. Dirk is long gone, and is probably going to go sulk for a few days before resurfacing. You glare at the water for a while longer before calling it quits. You angrily gather up your things from the sand and storm back to your house. But for as frustrated as you are Dirk’s offer lingers in the back of your mind for the rest of the night, and for many days after that._

Dirk squeezes your hand tightly. “Hey, I told you not to stress about that. Whatever you decide to do is okay with me.” 

“I know. And believe me I spent many days thinking over your offer, especially when you went off and pouted for a whole week after you ran off.”

Dirk scowls at you. “I was not pouting. I had an important job that needed to be done.” 

You chuckle. “Right, of course. What was I thinking, accusing the great Dirk Strider of sulking instead of talking about his feelings like a normal person. Surely he would never do something like that.”  You lean back against him, tilting your head to grin at him. “I’m still glad that you came back after that. You honestly had me scared when you didn’t show up even at our normal time.”

“I know. That was a dick move and I shouldn’t have just disappeared on you like that. I still regret that day.” Dirk releases your hand so that he can wrap his arm around you. “Now what exactly has you taking this trip down memory lane? Normally you’re all about recounting your latest encounter with a bear you wrestled or whatever.”

“We don’t have any bears on the island. Where did you even hear about those?” You live out in the middle of the ocean, far away from any continent and therefore any bears. 

Dirk just shrugs. “That’s not important. Now seriously, what’s up. I hate seeing you like this.”

You sigh, leaning harder against him and closing your eyes. “Grandma passed away in her sleep two nights ago,” you finally admit.

You feel Dirk stiffen against you, before he gathers you up in his arms and hugs you tightly. “I am so sorry, Jake.”

You take comfort in his embrace, willing yourself to continue. “I think she knew it was going to happen. A few days before she went on this whole big speech about how I shouldn’t feel tethered to this island or any of her work. I had no idea why she was telling me all that, since she had always made it clear that I could do anything I wanted to. But looking back I have to wonder if she just knew what was going to happen and wanted to remind me.” You curl into yourself, eyes burning but unable to shed any more tears. You had done plenty of that these past few days. 

You sit together in silence, quietly mourning your loss. Dirk begins running his hands through your hair and you finally allow yourself to start to relax. The sun has since disappeared beneath the horizon, the full moon now lightning the beach. 

“Grandma told me one other thing before she passed,” you speak up after the silence has dragged on long enough. Dirk hums softly, prompting you to continue. “She told me that if I do nothing else in my life, the one thing I should do was follow my heart.” You pull yourself away from Dirk in order to look at him. “And I am going to do just that. Dirk, I know I told you that I couldn’t allow you to change me into a siren when you first told me that was possible. But now I have nothing left for me here, and no reason to stay. I’m ready to come join you on our next adventure.”

Dirk is staring at you with wide eyes, jaw dropped in shock. “Jake, are you sure this is what you want? This is irreversible, and I don’t want you to make a decision that you will come to regret. You just lost your family, I need to know that you aren’t just jumping into this because you’re grieving.”

You shake your head. “No, I have thought this through. I always did plan to take up your offer one day. I just couldn’t say yes while my grandmother still needed me. But now there’s nothing left for me here. I have nowhere else to go, and living out my life here on this island alone is not how I want to spend my life. Now I want to spend my life with you. I am positive this is what I want.”

Dirk stares at you, looking for any sign that you might change your mind. You stare back resolutely. Finally Dirk nods, a smile slipping onto his face. “Alright. Let’s do this.” He shuffles off your rock, dropping back into the water and swimming out a ways. You pull your shoes and socks off before standing up and stripping out of your shirt and shorts. The water is cold when you jump in and wade out to where you can easily dive in. Dirk is waiting for you just past the point where you could still stand. He reaches out to take your hands and pull you further from the shore. 

As you travel further out into open water your nerves start to flare up. “So what exactly does this entail? Do I have to do anything for this to work?” 

Dirk shakes his head. “No, all the work is on my part. All you have to do is trust me. Though you’ll probably need to ditch the shorts, not sure what the spell would do with those.”

You briefly glance down at the boxers you are still wearing, face heating up at the thought. “This better not just be a ploy to get me naked.” It would not surprise you, but the logic also makes sense.

“You caught me. This was all just a plan to get you out of your pants.” You roll your eyes at the obvious sarcasm in Dirk’s voice, but you also appreciate the break in tension. 

Dirk comes to a stop once you are quite a ways from the island you used to call home, the two of you gently rocking with the waves. He gives you a pointed look, to which your blush comes back in full force. Pointedly staring at a random point over Dirk’s shoulder you reach down and discard your boxers. He’s smirking at you when you can finally look back at him, but thankfully doesn’t make a smart remark. Instead he presses a kiss to your lips and says, “Remember, just trust me.”

“I trust you,” you whisper. Dirk takes a deep breath and then begins to hum. It’s quiet at first, slow and calming but steadily getting louder. The melody is like nothing you have heard before, not even from the times Dirk had demonstrated his abilities to you before. It’s haunting in a way you can’t quite describe, like it’s reaching down into your very soul. The sound surrounds you, drowning out everything but Dirk and his singing. Sensation is slowly leaving your body, a strange numbness settling in it’s place. Dirk’s song suddenly speeds up, and with the increased tempo burning pain flares up in multiple parts of your body. The strongest points of fire are on your neck, stomach, and in your legs. You open your mouth to scream but discover at some point Dirk had dragged you under the water. Your eyes snap open, when had you closed them?, as you start to panic. Dirk is still there, right in front of you. You struggle to focus on him, to ignore the drastic changes your body is going through. It works for the most part, especially when his singing captures your mind once more. You’re not sure how long you stay like that, staring vacantly at Dirk while his singing holds you in a trance as you drift further down into the deep. Strangely enough your eyes never start to sting from the salt water, nor do your lungs begin to burn for air. You’re just there, existing in a moment of time.

Dirk’s melody reaches a crescendo, lingering on high note that resonates like a bell. The song slowly winds down after, and with each sinking note awareness comes back to you. The final note fades away, and when it’s gone you take in a deep breath of air. It feels no different even though you should have just swallowed a ton of seawater. You bring up your hands to see if they have changed and realize that your vision is strangely blurry. You frown, wondering if something went wrong. Then a thought occurs to you and you reach up to pull your glasses off. Your vision immediately clears and you giddily think that you will never have to wear glasses again. Now that you can see you go back to inspecting your new body. You hands are now webbed, short claws adorning each finger. Patches of emerald green scales cover the tops of your hands and run up your arms. Fins, smaller than Dirk’s, extend from you wrists to your elbows, tinted a light green. Working your way down you see two dark green slits on either side of your stomach, moving in time with each breath you take. Gills, you think and then wonder why you only have two on each side while Dirk has three. That thought is quickly forgotten as you reach the biggest change. Where your legs once existed there is now a large scaled tail in shimmering shades of emerald green. The scales are blunter than Dirk’s, forming more of an oblong circle than the sharp points that make up Dirk’s tail. Tentatively you flick your tail up so you can see the fin and you are rewarded with the sight of a short, broad fin that is nearly the opposite of Dirk’s long and narrow fin. As you continue to stare at your new body you almost can’t believe that this is you now. 

You manage to drag your gaze away from yourself to grin up at Dirk. “So, how do I look?” you ask him without hesitation. It’s only after you do so that you realize that talking doesn’t work too well underwater. Luckily, though your mouth had gone through all the movements and managed to do nothing but release a burst of bubbles, your new body had activated something in the back of your throat which had translated your words into a string of hums with alternating pitches. 

Dirk is grinning at you, looking more excited than you had ever seen. “You look absolutely gorgeous.” He comes over to wrap his arms around you, stealing a searing kiss which you gladly return. He releases you, giving your new form  another glance over. “It looks like you’re built for defense and endurance rather than speed like I am. It suits you.” That explains the differences in your forms at least. “So, ready to go see your new world?” 

You take his outstretched hand eagerly. “You bet I am! Tally ho, Strider! Off to our next adventure!”

Dirk merely chuckles and leads you away, going slowly as you adjust to swimming with one large tail. You’re not sure where exactly your life is going to lead you now, but what you do know is that Dirk will be there by your side for wherever it takes you.

**Author's Note:**

> This thing honestly got out of control. I'm beginning to think that anything I want to write is just going to expand into something huge. At least this stayed as the oneshot it was meant to be. 
> 
> Anyways I hope your enjoyed this story! If you have any questions or just want to chat you can find me at arcanusanima.tumblr.com


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